Method of making cushioned spectacle frames

ABSTRACT

Athletic eye spectacles having a frame including a lens-holding piece and temples. The frame includes a covering of a coating material which is soft and resilient, while the frame has an inner core of a harder material for properly supporting the lenses. The coating material is sufficiently resilient or soft so that if the spectacles are hit, the wearer will not be injured, nor will the person who strikes the spectacles. The spectacles are made by placing the inner or base frame in a mold, and the coating material is poured into the mold in liquid form and is permitted to set around the base frame. Finally, the temple pieces are also coated and affixed to the lens-holding frame piece.

United States Fatent 1191 1 3,74%,8gg Bogyos July 30, 11.973

54] METHOD or MAKING cosmowsn 2,060,094 11/1936 Martin 351 99 SPECTACLEFRAMES Frank S. Bogyos, 2510 Lawn St., Racine, Wis. 53404 Filed: Apr.26, 1971 Appl. No.: 137,622

Related us. Application Data Division of Ser. No. 835,996, June 24,1969, Pat. No. 3,582,193.

Inventor:

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/1940 Brunetti 264/275 PrimaryExaminer-David H. Rubin Attorney-Arthur I. Hansmann [5 7 ABSTRAQ'HAthletic eye spectacles having a frame including a lensholding piece andtemples. The frame includes a covering of a coating material which issoft and resilient, while the frame has an inner core of a hardermaterial for properly supporting the lenses. The coating material issufficiently resilient or soft so that if the spectacles are hit, thewearer will not be injured, nor will the person who strikes thespectacles. The spectacles are made by placing the inner or base framein a mold, and the coating material is poured into the mold in liquidform and is permitted to set around the base frame. Finally, the templepieces are also coated and affixed to the lens-holding frame piece.

3 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures METHOD OF MAKING CIJSI-IIONED SIEC'IACLEFRAMES This is a division of US. Pat. application Ser. No. 835,996,tiled June 24, 1969 and now (1.5. Pat. No. 3,582,193.

This invention relates to athletic eye spectacles and method of makingsame. More particularly, the invention pertains to eye spectacles whichcan be worn by an athlete who is subjected to contact with otherathletes or balls or the like, and the spectacles are designed towithstand the contact or impacts, without damage to the athlete or theobject hitting the spectacles, and without damage to the spectacles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Athletic eye spectacles are already known,and they are known in different forms, including structures where aninner frame piece, such as a metal piece, is covered with a softer outerpiece. The purpose is to protect the wearer from injury, and to alsoprotect the spectacles from damage if and when the spectacles are hit inthe athletic contest. One such example of spectacles is shown in U. S.Pat. No. 2,774,279 where the spectacles include a metal frame and thebridge is en circled with a rubbery material so that the spectacles reston the wearers nose by being supported thereon through the rubberymaterial. Also, portions of the temples and their mounting posts arecovered with a rubbery material. However, the remainder of thespectacles is uncovered or unprotected in that no coating or rubberymaterial encases the remainder. Therefore, most of the spectacles isexposed and subject to damage, and it is also exposed and likely toinjure the wearer if the spectacles are hit and pushed against thewearers face.

The present invention improves upon athletic eye spectacles, and it doesso by providing a pair of spectacles which is encapsulated and snuglycovered with a soft, resilient, tough, rubbery material extending overthe inner frame piece which is of a metal or like hard material suitablefor holding the desired shape of the spectacles. Further, the presentinvention provides a method for making spectacles, and to have them madein a manner which permits them to accurately fit the particular usersface.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a pair of athleticeye spectacles which give maximum protection to the spectacles, to thewearer, and to the person who might strike the spectacles, and theseobjectives are accomplished with spectacles which minimize interferencewith the wearer's vision, in comparison to athletic eye spectacles ofthe prior art. In accomplishing this object, the spectacles of thisinvention are formed of a soft, resilient, tough, rubbery material whichis translucent.

Still another object of this invention is provide athletic eyespectacles which are arranged to not only protect the spectacle framesbut to also protect the spectacle lenses. In accomplishing thisparticular object, the frames are arranged to have the lenses supportedin the rubbery coating material so that the lenses are actuallycushioned in their mounting or support in the frames.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of apreferred embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the spectacles shown in FIG. I andwith the mold shown.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of a portion of F361. 1.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 44 of FIG. it.

FIG. S is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 2, and being ona reduced scale.

FIGS. 6 and '7 are sectional views taken on the lines 6@ and 7--7,respectively, of FIG. 2, and being on an enlarged scale.

FIG. 8 is a. top plan view similar to FIG. 3, but with the two piecesshown separated from each other.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The spectaclesgenerally include a front or lensholding frame piece III and two templepieces Ill connected to the lens-holding piece. The piece 10 has aninner frame or core I2 which is of a hard material, such as the usualmetal material employed in eye spectacles. The piece 112 includes thetwo rims I3 and I4 and the nose bridge I5 which connects the rims I3 andlid, in the usual manner. Also, the piece I2 has the temple mountingposts I6 and 117 which have the usual screw openings I8 for receiving ascrew H9 in securing the temples Ill to the front piece Ill). Thus thetemples Ill have a metal inner piece or core 21 which terminates in anenlarged end 22 having a hole. 23 through which the screw I9 will passin mounting the temples II on the front piece III.

Thus the frame pieces 12 and 21 are generally of a conventional design,but they are covered with a rubbery coating material shown thereover.The front frame piece 12 has the coating material thereover and in formof the piece designated 24. The piece 241 is therefore also a framepiece and is considered to be the outer frame piece and it assumes thegeneral shape of the inner frame piece 12, as best shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 also shows that the lens-holding piece 10 is formed by suspendingthe inner frame piece 12 in a mold 2d. The mold has the lens or eyeopening cavities 27 and 2b, and it also has the nose piece 29. It willtherefore be seen that the mold 26 presents the eye piece bosses 31 inclose proximity to the inner edges 32 of the frame eye pieces I3 and I4,and FIG. 6 also shows this relationship. FIG. 65 further shows that theframe pieces 13 and 114 are C-shaped in cross section, and a correctivelens can be positioned within the frame rims or pieces 13 and 14, asindicated by the dotdash lines designated 33 in FIG. 6 which show therelative position of the lens to the frame.

In preference, the distance from the bosses 3E to the inner edges 32 ofthe rims 113 and 14 is one-half of a millimeter. Also in preference thedistance from the outer surface or edges 34 of the rims I3 and 14 to thewall 36 defining the cavities 27 and 28 is 3 millimeters. Further, thespan in the mold cavity in the area of the bridge I5 is greater than 3millimeters in the dimension below the bridge 15 and constituting thearea designated 37, and the dimension between the bridge 15 and the walldefining the mold cavity above the bridge 15, and designated 38, is alsopreferred to be three millimeters. Further, it will be noticed that theframe mounting posts 16 and I7 are spaced from the cavity walls 39 and41 With the frame piece 12 suspended in the mold 26, screws 42 aresecured in the mold 26 and extend into the cavity and through the screwholes 18. In this manner the frame inner piece 12 is fully suspended inthe mold 26 without touching any of the walls defining the mold cavity.The coating material 24 is then applied in the mold cavity by pouringthe material 24 in a liquid form into the cavity. This causes thematerial 24 to encapsulate the inner frame 12, and it does so in themillimeter dimensions given. This includes the showing in FIG. 6 wherethe inner edges 32 of the rims 13 and 14 are covered with the coatingmaterial to a depth of onehalf millimeter. Upon curing the liquidcoating material, it becomes a solid material of a resilient, tough, andrubbery characteristic, as desired.

FIG. shows that the coating material 24 has a formed nose piece alongthe curved surface 43, and the material 12 also has formed nose pads 44.This structure and method of making the spectacles therefore permits theshaping and fitting the spectacles to a particular size for certainusers. That is, the mold bridge piece 29, and the other portions of themold 26 can be of certain dimensions and relationships so that theresulting frame will be of a size and fit desired.

Thus FIG. 5 shows that the mold piece 26 has a mating mold piece 46which may be used to form the nose bridge described. Also, it will thenbe understood that FIG. 2 shows the frame piece 10 in a face-downposition in the mold 26.

After the liquid forming the rubbery coating material 24 is cured, theframe piece 10 is removed from the mold pieces 26 and 46 and is joinedwith the two temple pieces 11. The temple pieces 11 are also made in amold, such as shown in FIG. 4 with the mold pieces 47 and 48. Here thetemple metal or core piece 21 is encapsulated or coated with the rubberymaterial described, and such material is indicated at 49. This materialextends substantially throughout the length of the temple metal pieces21, and except for the projecting temple piece 22 and the curved templeear pieces 51, the coating 49 completely covers the temples 21.

In order to join the temples 11 to the frame piece 10, the material 24adjacent the frame mounting posts 16 and 17 can be cut along a line 52so that the temple ends 22 can be inserted into the material 24 andalign the temple holes with the frame front piece hole 1.8. Then anotheropening can'be made in the material 24 and the securing screws 53 can beinserted in the aligned holes 18 and 23. Also, the frame piece 12 hasthe usual separable ends at the mounting posts 16 and 17, and these endsare secured together by the usual screws 54 which pass through the screwholes which are not shown but are aligned with the frame screws 54, inthe usual manner. The screw holes in the material 24, and the slit 52,can then all be again sealed with rubber cement so that the frame frontpiece 10 is completely finished in that it is covered with the desiredrubbery material. Of course the corrective lenses, such as the indicatedlens at 33, would be inserted in the rims 13 and 14 and cushioned by theone-half millimeter of rubbery material 24, prior to the closing of therims 13 and 14 by the screws 54, as described. This cushions the lensesin the frames, and there is then less likelihood of damage to the lensesand of injury to the user.

In the aforegoing description, it will therefore be seen that thespectacles are formed of a relatively hard frame material at the innercore of the spectacles, and such material is preferable the metal usedconventionally in the safety spectacles. Then the metal inner core iscovered with the softer rubbery material which is formed by the moldingprocess described. Also, the rubbery material is of a translucentcharacteristic so that the vision of the wearer will not besubstantially hindered while the coating material is softer than theinner core material, and is more resilient than the inner core material,nevertheless the coating material is sufficiently sturdy to resistdeflecting under the weight of the spectacles while they are in positionon the wearer, so the corrective lenses will be properly positioned andretained in proper position on the wearers face. Also, the coatingmaterial described then covers the entire frames, except for the earpieces 51. The coating therefore includes the coverage of the templeends 22, since they are inserted in the bosses or mass 56, and thecoating material 57 on the temples 11 is then in snug contact with thecoating material surface 58 on the front frame piece 10, as shown inFIG. 3 and as indicated in FIG. 8.

The coating material is a material designated 3140 RTV ProtectiveCoating, manufactured by Dow Chemical Company and it is a rubbersilicone which takes approximately 48 hours to cure and has a hardnessof 25 on a Shore A scale durometer reading, and it has a tensilestrength of 300 psi, and it is of a high degree of translucence. Theelongation is 350 per cent, and tear strength is 20 ppi, Die B reading.

The aforementioned describes the structure as well as the method ofmaking the spectacles. With regard to the method, it will therefore beunderstood that the spectacles are made by providing the metal framecore 12 and suspending it in a mold 26 by a suitable means, such as thescrews 42. The liquid coating material is poured into the mold cavity,and the frame piece 12 is completely submerged in the liquid which isallowed to cure to the rubbery coating substance described. The screws42 are then removed and then the front piece 10 can then be removed fromthe mold 26. Appropriate slits, such as the slit 52, can then be made inthe front piece 10 and the lenses can be inserted in the rims l3 and 14and the fastening screws 54 can then be placed on the frame core 12 tosecure the lenses in place. Finally, the temples 11 can be formed in themold pieces 47 and 48, and the temple ends 22 can be inserted throughthe slits 52, and the screws 53 can be positioned to secure the templesto the front frame piece 10. Finally, the holes in the material 24 forinserting the screws 53 and 54 can be cemented closed, and the slit 52can also be cemented closed, and thereby the entire frame inner core,except for the ear pieces 51, will be encapsulated with the rubberycoating which is in full and snug contact with the inner core pieces 12and 21, as described. Alternatively, the slit 52 could be avoided andthe coating material stretched, rather than being cut,for insertion ofof the lens.

What is claimed is:

1. A method of making athletic eye spectacles, comprising the steps ofproviding an eye spectacle frame piece with lens-holding rims and withtemple posts separable for permitting insertion of lenses into said rimsand with said temple posts having screw holes to permit said rims to bescrew-retained closed and with said frame piece having a connecting nosebridge, suspending said frame piece in a mold having a cavity,positioning two threaded screws in said mold to be threaded therein andthreadedly engaging each said screw hole with one of said threadedscrews to retain said frame piece suspended in said mold cavity,selecting a hardenable liquid which cures to a resilient condition,introducing said liquid into said cavity and completely enclosing saidframe piece with said liquid to a depth of 5 several millimetersencapsulating said frame piece except on the inside edges of said rims,curing said liquid, removing said threaded screws from said screw holesand removing the encapsulated said frame piece from said mold, insertinglenses in said rims, and affixing temple pieces to said temple posts byinserting small screws into said screw holes.

1. A method of making athletic eye spectacles, comprising the steps ofproviding an eye spectacle frame piece with lens-holding rims and withtemple posts separable for permitting insertion of lenses into said rimsand with said temple posts having screw holes to permit said rims to bescrew-retained closed and with said frame piece having a connecting nosebridge, suspending said frame piece in a mold having a cavity,positioning two threaded screws in said mold to be threaded therein andthreadedly engaging each said screw hole with one of said threadedscrews to retain said frame piece suspended in said mold cavity,selecting a hardenable liquid which cures to a resilient condition,introducing said liquid into said cavity and completely enclosing saidframe piece with said liquid to a depth of several millimetersencapsulating said frame piece except on the inside edges of said rims,curing said liquid, removing said threaded screws from said screw holesand removing the encapsulated said frame piece from said mold, insertinglenses in said rims, and affixing temple pieces to said temple posts byinserting small screws into said screw holes.
 2. The method of claim 1,including the steps of slitting the cured encapsulating materialadjacent said temple posts and inserting an end of each of said templepieces into a respective one of said slits, anchoring said temple piecesto said temple posts with said small screws, and sealing said slits. 3.The method of claim 1, including the steps of separating each of saidtemple posts to open said rims for insertion of said lens into saidrims, and stretching said encapsulating material adjacent said templeposts for effecting the opening of said rims.